We manage a Heritage Centre| housed in the former Church of St Mary’s, an extensive collection of local history material at Gateshead Central Library| and smaller collections at all branch libraries. Our services from St Mary’s Heritage Centre| specialize in Family History and the history of the immediate area; our collections at the Central Library include books, pamphlets, local newspapers, original manuscripts, maps, plans, illustrations, posters and photographs. There is space at both locations for private research with microfilm/fiche readers and computers which you can book, although the Central Library houses the majority of our resources and facilities.
We are happy to help with your enquiries. Where these include detail or may require some research, please contact us by e-mail or post rather than by phone as we are able to give a better service in this way. We are happy to receive phone requests for general or holdings enquiries or to provide an update about any enquiry you may have sent. Details of e-mail, telephone and addresses are given below.
For information about searching the historical indexes of Births, Deaths and Marriages within Gateshead, or ordering copy Birth, Death and Marriage certificates, please visit the web pages for Gateshead Register Office.
Original documents are collected and managed by Tyne and Wear Archives Service (TWAS) on behalf of the five Tyne and Wear Local Authorities. The archives include Local Authority records such as minutes, building plans, school records; hospital records; records of magistrates and other courts; business and industry records. Also collected are church and chapel records (including registers of baptisms, marriages and burials); records of local organizations and the private papers of individuals and families from all walks of life. For further information about TWAS, including their online catalogue, research and copying services, depositing of records and publications and reports please visit their website by clicking on the link below.